Trinidad police detain Israeli; may be linked to bombings

Trinidadian authorities have detained an Israeli national found living in a remote mountainous area east of the capital, police said, declining to state if he was being questioned in connection with a recent spate of bombings in the Caribbean island nation.

A string of bombings, the latest one occuring last Thursday, have rocked the capital of Port-of-Spain. The bombings have injured 28 people.

Authorities identified the detained man as Dahtang Mik Agarunov, 26. They said he was found living in a wooden shack in Arouca, about 10 miles east of Port-of-Spain. Agarunov was detained on Friday and questioned by Interpol, Trinidadian police and immigration officials.

Authorities would not say if Agarunov was being questioned in connection with a spate of four bombings last month. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombings or linked them to any political movement.

"Once we have completed our investigation, we will be in a better place to provide more detail," said Police Commissioner Trevor Paul.

Agarunov has not been charged with any crime. He arrived in Trinidad on October 18, but authorities have not confirmed why he was visiting the island.

The Israeli Embassy spokesman in Venezuela, Giora Loterstein, said he was unaware of Agarunov's detention.

The Israel Embassy in Venezuela - 7 miles (11 kilometers) from Trinidad - oversees Israeli affairs in the twin-island nation.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/13026853.htm

Posted on Sat, Oct. 29, 2005
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TRINIDAD BOMBINGS TIMELINE

Details of recent bombings in Trinidad:

• July 11: In a trash bin on a busy street in downtown Port-of-Spain. Twelve people were injured, two critically.

• August 10: In a pile of trash on a shop-lined street in downtown Port-of-Spain. No injuries.

• Sept. 10: In a trash bin outside a KFC restaurant in downtown Port-of-Spain. One person injured.

• Oct. 14: Outside a popular bar in a Port-of-Spain suburb. Fourteen people injured.

• Oct. 27: In front of a construction site in Port-of-Spain. No injuries.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/13026854.htm

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad - A parallel drug economy and a crippling crime surge of kidnappings for ransom, murders and, more recently, bombings have placed this oil- and gas-rich Caribbean nation on the edge of a crisis.

Crime has continued to rise despite Prime Minister Patrick Manning's zero-tolerance promises. The island has registered a record 310 murders so far this year. Kidnappings are also up, at about 60 this year, almost double last year's figure.

Now a string of five bombings that started in July -- the latest one occurred Thursday -- have rocked the capital of Port-of-Spain and left Trinidadians with a new sense of vulnerability. The bombings have injured 28 people.

About 15,000 Trinidadians recently marched through Port-of-Spain to protest the record crime rate on this island of 1.3 million people.

''You find yourself looking over your shoulder all the time,'' said George Clarke, a soca singer.

The latest bombing occurred outside a construction site in downtown Port-of-Spain. There were no injuries. Authorities have yet to link this bombing to the others.

After an Oct. 14 bombing outside a popular bar on a busy entertainment strip, many Trinidadians said they were reassessing their custom of rounding off the workweek with friends at a favorite watering hole.

An increasing number of people admit they now fear going out.

''It's an uncomfortable vibe,'' Clarke said.

By all indications, the discomfort may continue for some time. National Security Minister Martin Joseph said last week that ``things are likely to get worse before it gets better.''

On Tuesday, FBI Director Robert Mueller flew in for a one-day visit. After meeting with Manning and his national security team, Mueller pledged U.S. assistance to Trinidad's anti-crime effort. He offered to expand the U.S. legal attache's office in Port-of-Spain,provide four agents to assist in the bombing investigations, more forensic help in identifying trace materials used in the bombings and increased assistance in areas of narco-trafficking and kidnapping.

''I have become more aware than I was before of the crime situation that faces the population of this country and to the extent that we can assist in doing so we would like to'' help, Mueller said at a news conference, according to the Associated Press.

Days before the bar bombing, the U.S. State Department issued an advisory to Americans in Trinidad to stay off the streets in downtown Port-of-Spain.

The attacks directed police attention to Islamic organization Jamaat al Muslimeen's leader Yasin Abu Bakr and three followers, who were questioned and released.

Bakr, who led a violent coup attempt against the government in July 1990, later dismissed law enforcement interest in his group as a ''political conspiracy'' and vowed to use the intelligence arm of his group to find the perpetrators of the bombings.

Before the fourth bombing, police sent trace elements of materials used in the homemade bombs to the FBI in a bid to catch the so-called ``dustbin bomber.''

Early analysis, according to law enforcement officials, suggests that materials used in the previous three bombings are similar.

Gregory Aboud, president of the Downtown Owners and Merchants Association, said the bombings have put a dent in business. The local Chamber of Commerce called them ``a direct attempt to destabilize the country and take innocent lives.''

http://www.iags.org/n1115045.htm

Radical Islam and LNG in Trinidad and Tobago

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